Editor’s note: Beryl New, principal of Highland Park High School, grew up in the neighborhood directly surrounding Monroe School. In this essay, she recalls a tight-knit, integrated and caring neighborhood and urges readers to remember Monroe School for more than its role in the Brown v. Board case.

I am a proud Topekan. I was raised in an insulated community bounded on the south by S.E. 18th Street, on the north by S.E. 15th Street, on the east by Adams Street, and on the west by Kansas Avenue. Every adult in that community seemed to have adopted the responsibility of the welfare and upbringing of every child in that community, no matter what their color or to whom they were assigned on a census record. If you were from the neighborhood, there were high expectations for your positive outcome.

I attended Monroe Elementary School from 1961 to 1964. When we entered those doors in the morning, we were greeted by great educators, such as Mrs. Flossie Holland, Mrs. North, Mrs. Crawford, Miss Mamie Williams, Mrs. Teresa Counts, Mr. Winfred Tidwell, and many others who shaped our lives and our love for learning.

They taught us more than our “ABC’s and 123’s.” They taught us to read well, write well and think well. They taught us how to take care of ourselves and others. They instilled in us the pride that comes with work well done.

Mrs. Walker was the principal of Monroe Elementary School when I first arrived. She did not play! She wore black every day — black dress, black hose and black shoes.

I recall one day when our class had been released for a bathroom break, a couple of my classmates and I were in the restroom. I was in a stall while they were playing at the sink. I heard the door open and a throat clear. A strong voice said, “Girls!”

Instinctively, I drew my feet up onto the seat. I prayed that my racing heart would not be heard pounding in my chest. Holding my breath, I listened as she ordered, “Go directly to my office!”

The reputation of her long paddle was not underrated, and I had no intention of unjustly experiencing its wrath! I waited until I heard her heavy footsteps fade, then finished my business and quickly returned to my classroom.

I realized later, probably when I became an educator myself, that I did not fear her as much as I respected her. She was serious about our outcome. She cared enough for children who were not her own to instill in us the character qualities that would carry us far in life. It was important that we knew to be where we were supposed to be doing what we were supposed to do at all times.

That maxim is one that I have taught to each of my own eight wonderful children and to all of my students in the 44 years I have been a parent and the 26 years I have been an educator. Though the vast majority of these youth have also learned that lesson well, I still have a few who haven’t, encouraging me that I still have work to do.

It does take a village to raise a child. I’m grateful, though, that my parents began our rearing in the home.

My father, Rev. George W. Massey, was a “poor parson,” but we were taught to read before we ever entered public school, to set a formal table, to play chess as young children, to sing in harmony and to speak French. My mother taught us to be gracious, courteous, obedient, respectful and productive. Our evenings were spent reading and enjoying all types of musical genre. Classical music, jazz and spirituals were my favorites.

All of these things were learned before we ever entered Monroe Elementary School. Yet, our cultural and social education was continued at school and even within our neighborhood. Such families as the Burnetts, the Mays, the Carsons, the Kenneys, the Stewarts, the Freemans, the Williams/Barber sisters, Miss Laura and Mr. Moultry who operated the little restaurant on 15th and Monroe, the Washingtons, the Blackwells, the Johnsons, the Andersons, the Everetts, the Sanders, the Normans, and so many others who lived on Quincy, Monroe, 15th, and 18th Streets provided key elements of our village education.

Don’t get in trouble at school and have to walk home! The news would travel faster on the old-time party line than it would on a cellphone today! Neighbors would offer a word of wisdom, a word of warning, a verbal rebuke and even a “helping” handful of reprimand before a child even faced his parents. I’m so glad that I only heard about that aspect of the village raising.

For all of these reasons and countless others, Monroe Elementary School has always been more to me than just the pivot in a court case. It is even more than beloved brick and mortar set on an expansive grassy lot.

The true essence and fabric of Monroe Elementary School is embodied in the educators who cared for their charges with a fierce and tangible love. These were professionals who waged war on ignorance in every form and on every level. Though they taught us survival skills, their focus was not on limitations but on possibilities.

Monroe Elementary School was an incubator of hope, expectation, and promise for all children. Many of its alumni eventually grew to work alongside the pioneers who had paved the way for their education. I am one who chose to follow in their footsteps, and that is a choice I have never regretted.

These great educators were the true laborers who put their hands to the plow to plant change in Topeka. Their work may have been hard and thankless at times, but they were visionaries. They knew that if they planted the seed, the promised harvest would come. And they would have done it without a Supreme Court mandate.

I am confident that the neighborhood’s children of all ethnicities were testament that their work was not in vain. I know that I was richly touched by their labors of love, and my life has been made better for it.

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Thank you for becoming such a neat leader. I think that you emulate what good leaders know about treating your people as the best resource available to you. You are a definite plus for Topeka Public Schools.

you now show in all you do. Thank you for being graceful, sincere about your charge, committed to the achievement of future citizens and strength to take on challenges others run from or take for granted.

Thank you Dr New for your ongoing service and leadership in our community!